User reviews

This show has received mixed reviews. Some have loved it. Some have hated it. I don't often leave reviews however I do often read reviews when deciding whether to watch something. I decided to write this review based on the poor reviews because I felt very strongly about this that I just had to put my opinion across. This show is amazing. It's draws you in, puts you in the main characters position and never lets go. The acting is fantastic, the mood, the music the visuals are also great. I watch a lot of shows, most of them are entertaining enough but not very often do I come across a show like this that gets you completely enthralled and then has you screaming at the screen as the end credits role because you cant stand the thought of having to wait 7 days for the next episode. Like I said at the beginning. Some people are slamming this show for being "unoriginal" "boring" "stupid". My reply to these are as follows:

Unoriginal? OK, so the premise is nothing new, its not earth shattering but trust me, you've never seen it told like this before! Boring? Absolutely not, this person must have the attention span of a 3 year old because I couldn't get enough of the suspense and drama. I just could not wait to find out what happens next and you genuinely care about the characters! And finally stupid? I'm sorry but this is very narrow minded. This is a naive young man who makes some pretty silly decisions under the influence of alcohol and drugs. We've all been there. Which is what makes this show so great. It resonates with us all. It's very real.

In closing I would just like to say. Watch the first episode. I think you will absolutely love it.

What I like about this kind of series is that the story is good by itself but its by no means outstanding. The most important aspect is the storytelling, the presentation, the psychological tour of the characters, the portrayal of different cultures, and family, and relationships, and professions. That's the most impressive thing about this series.

One of the most fascinating things about shows like this is the characters itself are so rich. I've seen very few TV shows that covers extremely sophisticated characters like Matthew on True Detective, and this girl on 'The Night of', and Naz himself. For me, just focusing on the story line for the sole purpose of entertainment is like just focusing on guitar sounds in a piece of music.

This is the reason why I love the first season of True Detective, and this is the same reason why I love this series just after one episode.

Stunning, unpredictable, fresh, cynical. Perfect casting and sub plots. Scarily close to the bone on key social and religious tensions all around us. Authentic, gripping, binge-worthy

If you were a fan of 'The Killing', especially the first three seasons, then 'The Night Of' will be right up your alley. Gripping, engaging, methodical story telling that is somehow simultaneously slow and fast paced. Even when not much is happening, you will find yourself bracing in anticipation. Sad it's a limited series. I hope HBO decides to produce more content like this. In the meantime, I'll be eagerly awaiting the next installment. The acting is superb but the pacing is the real gem. Long before the first installment gets to the meat of the plot, intense, ominous moments of foreshadowing are peppered at the perfect times to really keep you biting your nails without even knowing why. I sighed in bittersweet relief when the credits rolled. And this is only the first episode.

A mild mannered, young man 'Naz' takes his father's cab to head to a House Party, en route he encounters a mysterious, attractive girl. Captivated by her, Has heads back to her place, where the two make out, his life changes the following morning.

The bug question is, did her or didn't he?

This is the art of storytelling at its finest, as a story, it's not exactly unique, but the way it's told, the way it unravels, the realism, that feels unique.

Riz Ahmed is a revelation as Naz, brilliant from the first scene to the last, I believed every aspect of the character, he had an innocence and a sincerity that was crucial for the role. The transformation in his character throughout was amazingly played out. You'd struggle to recognise Naz in the last from the first episode.

I loved John Turturro and his character John Stone, a superb performance, he made John so interesting, his eczema/psoriasis gave him a unique side story.

I won't pretend to know a great deal about the American legal and penal service, but I think what the writer was trying to show was that you put a shy kid into the prison service, and he'll come out of it worse then when he went in.

I can think of no negatives whatsoever, possibly only the ambiguity at the end, did he do it or not? I think I it was made 99% clear that he was innocent, but I'm sure a second series will reply explore.

The Night of is fantastic 10/10.

I thought the opening episode of the new HBO limited series The Night Of, which Roger Ebert's website called Agatha Christie meets The Wire, was engrossing and compelling. Richard Price is a solid writer, having knocked out juicy realism before in scripts for solid films like Sea of Love, Color of Money & the Scorsese "Life's Lessons" segment of New York Stories, and Steven Zaillian, an even better writer, directs here with the same precision for detail he brought to the underrated A Civil Action (Travolta, Duvall).

Great subtle acting abounds, and a modern day Twin Peaks meets True Detective emerges. I've always been a big John Turturro fan, and his grizzled and weary performance here as the suspect's attorney just might end up being Emmy worthy (time will tell). Riz Ahmed, as the main protagonist, brings the same innocent, befuddled but smarter-than-you-think characterization to the mystery storyline here that he aced as Gyllenhaal's doomed side-kick in Nightcrawler, and we just can't stop watching, because every time we ever felt stupid, cornered or scared is echoed in his soft spoken mannerisms of trapped anguish.

I'm looking forward to watching the remaining 7 episodes every Sunday night at 9 on HBO.

As someone who usually dislikes ambiguous or open-ended conclusions, The Night Of surprised me-in the best way possible. For once, I wasn't left frustrated or second-guessing what really happened. I was left with goosebumps, a rare thing for me, and a sense of emotional closure that most shows fumble.

One moment in particular hit me hard: the cat. I genuinely thought it was gone, and as a cat lover and someone who rescued mine, that little subplot had been quietly haunting. So when the cat returns at the end, it shocked me-and not in a cheap twist way. It was subtle, symbolic, and deeply human.

What really elevated this to a 9.9/10 was how the show respected the damage. There was no forced cleanup, no fairytale resolution. Naz is free, but not healed. His family is broken, their house being sold. His relationship with his parents is fractured. John has moved on. Even the way the truth comes out-without fanfare-feels exactly right for a world that doesn't always reward truth or justice in the ways we want.

That's what makes the ending perfect: it didn't try too hard. It didn't feel the need to spoon-feed meaning or neatly wrap up trauma. It understood that sometimes, the story ends with a person changed-maybe forever, maybe for the worse-and that's all it needs to say.

I usually enjoy "happy ending" narratives, and I don't say this lightly: The Night Of ended in the only way it should have. And because of that, it's one of the rare few I'll remember long after the credits rolled.

Yes, what you hear it's true: it's a story about a murder and it has been told a million times. But NEVER like this, let me assure you. This is pure art. This show tells you the details about the story, builts up fantastic characters, and invites you to follow the story in a very slow and fulfilling pace. You know what's going to happen from the first episode, but what they have created here makes you sit down in front of your TV for 8 episodes to see HOW they get there. It's raw, it's real, it's perfectly written and directed, with a cast that blew my mind. It's a true pleasure to see HBO creating shows like this, the only pity here it's that it's a limited series, and I won't get to see any more from them.

True Detective. GOT and The Wire just a few examples of great shows that HBO produce over the years. The Night Of only need 20 minutes to make you feel part of the story. Riz Ahmed is just so great in the personification of Nasir, and in some point I feel bad for that guy. The characters are amazing and the suspense presented along the show is outstanding.If you're a fan of thriller movies you don't want to miss this show. I think this is one of the best shows ever made and I found this by chance when I was looking for some new TV show to view. The problem is when probably the best TV shows are made, is hard to find new shows that can march the quality presented by GOT, The Wire, Breaking Bad, Luther, True Detective and some other shows. I don't want to say anymore, just view it, if you're capable of see deep, slow, suspense, but mesmerizing thriller.

Nasir "Naz" Khan is a 20-something University student living in New York. One night he takes his father's taxi to go to a party. Along the way he meets a beautiful young woman, Andrea, and his plans change. They go back to her place and after a night of drugs and passion, Naz wakes up to find Andrea dead, stabbed to death. Naz panics and flees the scene, only to be picked up by the police for a traffic offence. ULtimately Naz ends up at the police station, where the police then realise they have the prime suspect in a murder, and Naz is held for questioning. On the case is the methodical, perceptive Detective Sergeant Box. Box builds a compelling case against Naz and arrests him for Andrea's murder. Also on the scene is small-time lawyer Jack Stone who convinces Naz to hire him. However, the weight of evidence against Naz is massive and Jack Stone may be out of his depth.

Incredibly compelling drama. Shows in detail how the justice system operates, its processes and flaws. Shows how innocence or guilt doesn't really matter to the police and prosecutor - chance of conviction is what matters. Also shows the conditions prisoners face while awaiting trial and how this imprisonment with criminals can affect them, potentially turning innocent citizens into criminals.

Very engaging - you empathise with Naz and his family and what they are going through. Moreover, the situation is so plausible and could easily happen to many everyday, innocent people. Very solid plot.

Quite gripping too - the final outcome is in doubt until the very end and there are many twists and turns along the way. The final few scenes are incredibly enthralling and ultimately quite emotional.

Solid performance by Riz Ahmed in the lead role. Stand out performance goes to John Turturro as Jack Stone. His character is decidedly non-glamorous and Turturro thrives on those sorts of roles. Wonderful everyman downtroddedness-yet-resourcefulness to his performance.

Great supporting cast too. Nobody puts a foot wrong.

It's been 5/6 years since I watched this series and nothing compares. So flawlessly done... I can't say enough about this series. Call in sick to work, cancel brunch plans, have a pee jar nearby.

I only want to point out one thing...the other 9 and 10 reviews have said it all except one thing that stands out for me, something that has disturbed me for some time in tv dramas and in movies. Here it is completely absent. Music...no music, oh joy! The absence of music just makes it crackle. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Love the show, wish there were more seasons. Riz is incredible and the tone/suspense is fantastic.

Greetings from Lithuania.

"The Night Of" (2016) is simply the best and the most involving TV series i've seen in years, yes - in years. Many. This is it. This is what "True Detective" wanted to be and failed miserably in season two. Damn, i even liked "The Night Of" better then the first amazing season of "True Detective".

Everything worked in "The Night Of" on the highest possible note. Writing was simply perfect. Directing of each scene is absolutely top notch. There weren't any scenes in here meant to simply "occupy airtime". Everything here leads to something in the most realistic and plausible way.

The story itself could have been shown on one of "Law&Order" episodes in ~60 min. Here it lasts for 9 hours. 9 amazing hours. Acting was incredible, especially by Bill Camp from who's detective Dennis Box i just couldn't take my eyes of and ... well... everyone.

Overall, i can not praise this limited series any higher. This is the best show i have seen since ... i don't know which season of "Game Of Thrones". Although it is slowly paced, every damn scene is just done so involvingly that i just kinda didn't wanted this show to end. Unfortunately it did end. Perfectly.

So so so good! If you are a fan of true crime and courtroom drama then give it a try. I was glued to this story and avoided spoilers which made it that much better. The acting and character arc's were superb. And John Turturro... muah! Well done HBO. More please...

The last episode, especially last scene was emotional. We had tears in eyes for the character John Stone. Articulated story presentation & captivating till the last scene. Beautiful series.. just amazing..

"The Night Of" (as in the commonly used court phrase, "on the night of") is a griping HBO drama filmed in the gritty sections of New York. The story innocently begins when a Muslim college student (Riz Ahmed) picks up a party girl in his father's taxi cab and drives her around the city. After a night of sex and drugs in her bedroom, he wakes up and finds her brutally stabbed, naked body. A legal "night crawler" (John Tuturro) happens to run into young Nasir during his arrest and claims him as his client but is forced to share his fee with a beautiful but untested Muslim lawyer (Amara Karan). They are a formidable team with his street smarts and her conviction in Naz's innocence and cast doubt in this "open and shut" murder case in spite of the brazen wrongdoings committed by the police, the prosecuting attorney, and the prison guards. The murky suspense keeps building as each thought provoking episode airs and the entire series deserves a 10 out of 10.

I loved this show, in fact, I still do. The storyline was interesting, and the cinematography was absolutely stunning.

I am proud and I congratulate everyone involved in the making of this show, not only for their outstanding work, but how passionate they were with their roles throughout this show.

Kudos,

-Ayano

I've started a review for this short series a couple of times before erasing it and putting my phone away. Because I struggle to find the power statement that expresses why this show was so phenomenal - and what exactly made it phenomenal. But maybe it's because it was everything. The acting itself could've probably made any storyline or plot outstanding. I honestly feel like this show had two segments: the first episode, and the last. Everything in between was just background noise - but wow was it awesome. It took an easy 2 part murder mystery and created a unforgettable show. Just a pleasure to watch. I can honestly say the only thing I remember John Turturro from was a dinky park of Transformers, and now he might be one of the most well known actors in my book because of how fantastic he was. Watch this show, just watch it.

This is what TV shows should be like. In an age of stupid teenage shows or stupid superheroes shows with far-fetched science, getting something as real and raw as The Night Of is so so so so refreshing. You get a real look (at least it feels at real as it can get without going into documentary mode) at the NY jail system and at how a normal kid can spiral down once he's in it. Nothing in this show feels fake or forced, not the acting, not the storytelling, not the facts of how things happen... nothing! Everything here feels so real. Don't go at this expecting non-stop action and big budget special effects, you'll crash miserable. The action in this show is delivered emotionally and mentally. There are so few good shows out there that once I finished this one I just felt like going back at it from the start, that's how good it is. Thank you for such a piece of art!